Palm Hardware: Tsunamidi

On a theme of old expansion modules, I couldn’t leave out this one. Famed as being the only module with true MIDI in capabilities. This tone module offered a full General MIDI sound set and wavetable synthesis. The Tsunamidi was about the same size as the Palm V Modem. It took two AA batteries and didn’t use any additional power from the handheld.

It had a built-in speaker and headphone jack and a port for an AC power adapter. There was also a special cable (included) that gave you full sized MIDI-in and MIDI-out ports to connect to any electronic music instruments or equipment.

Tsunamidi was made by Singapore Shinei Sangyo Pte. Ltd. Here are some nice quotes from the original launch of the device:

“The Tsunamidi product is a valuable and convenient add-on for musicians everywhere,” said T. Nakagaki, chairman, Shinei Group. “Its tools to create and edit music complement the Palm V handheld’s mobility and simplicity to allow musicians to practice their art wherever they are.” “Composing music has been traditionally limited to a studio,” said ByronConnell, vice president, Consumer Markets Group, Palm, Inc. “The Tsunamidi frees musicians to compose music anywhere with just their Palm handheld and their imagination.”

I did like this unit, but I could never get the MIDI in to work right. However, the sound quality was very good indeed.